5 By these have the isles of the nations been parted in their lands, each by his tongue, by their families, in their nations.
These `are' sons of Ham, by their families, by their tongues, in their lands, in their nations.
For, pass to the isles of Chittim, and see, And to Kedar send, and consider well, And see if there hath been like this:
Fearful `is' Jehovah against them, For He made bare all gods of the land, And bow themselves to Him, each from his place, Do all islanders of the nations.
And to Eber have two sons been born; the name of the one `is' Peleg (for in his days hath the earth been divided,) and his brother's name `is' Joktan.
And the whole earth is of one pronunciation, and of the same words, and it cometh to pass, in their journeying from the east, that they find a valley in the land of Shinar, and dwell there; and they say each one to his neighbour, `Give help, let us make bricks, and burn `them' thoroughly:' and the brick is to them for stone, and the bitumen hath been to them for mortar. And they say, `Give help, let us build for ourselves a city and tower, and its head in the heavens, and make for ourselves a name, lest we be scattered over the face of all the earth.' And Jehovah cometh down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men have builded; and Jehovah saith, `Lo, the people `is' one, and one pronunciation `is' to them all, and this it hath dreamed of doing; and now, nothing is restrained from them of that which they have purposed to do. Give help, let us go down, and mingle there their pronunciation, so that a man doth not understand the pronunciation of his companion.' And Jehovah doth scatter them from thence over the face of all the earth, and they cease to build the city; therefore hath `one' called its name Babel, for there hath Jehovah mingled the pronunciation of all the earth, and from thence hath Jehovah scattered them over the face of all the earth.
Kings of Tarshish and of the isles send back a present. Kings of Sheba and Seba a reward bring near.
Therefore in prosperity honour ye Jehovah, In isles of the sea, the name of Jehovah, God of Israel.
Seen have isles and fear, ends of the earth tremble, They have drawn near, yea, they come.
He doth not become weak nor bruised, Till he setteth judgment in the earth, And for his law isles wait with hope.
Hearken, O isles, unto me, And attend, O peoples, from afar, Jehovah from the womb hath called me, From the bowels of my mother He hath made mention of my name.
Near `is' My righteousness, Gone out hath My salvation and Mine arms, Peoples they judge, on Me isles do wait, Yea, on Mine arm they do wait with hope.
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Commentary on Genesis 10 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 10
Ge 10:1-32. Genealogies.
1. sons of Noah—The historian has not arranged this catalogue according to seniority of birth; for the account begins with the descendants of Japheth, and the line of Ham is given before that of Shem though he is expressly said to be the youngest or younger son of Noah; and Shem was the elder brother of Japheth (Ge 10:21), the true rendering of that passage.
generations, &c.—the narrative of the settlement of nations existing in the time of Moses, perhaps only the principal ones; for though the list comprises the sons of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, all their descendants are not enumerated. Those descendants, with one or two exceptions, are described by names indicative of tribes and nations and ending in the Hebrew im, or the English "-ite."
5. the isles of the Gentiles—a phrase by which the Hebrews described all countries which were accessible by sea (Isa 11:11; 20:6; Jer 25:22). Such in relation to them were the countries of Europe, the peninsula of Lesser Asia, and the region lying on the east of the Euxine. Accordingly, it was in these quarters the early descendants of Japheth had their settlements.
6. sons of Ham—emigrated southward, and their settlements were: Cush in Arabia, Canaan in the country known by his name, and Mizraim in Egypt, Upper and Lower. It is generally thought that his father accompanied him and personally superintended the formation of the settlement, whence Egypt was called "the land of Ham" [Ps 105:23, 27; 106:22].
8. Nimrod—mentioned as eclipsing all his family in renown. He early distinguished himself by his daring and successful prowess in hunting wild beasts. By those useful services he earned a title to public gratitude; and, having established a permanent ascendancy over the people, he founded the first kingdom in the world [Ge 10:10].
10. the beginning of his kingdom—This kingdom, of course, though then considered great, would be comparatively limited in extent, and the towns but small forts.
11. Out of that land went forth Asshur—or, as the Margin has it, "He [Nimrod] at the head of his army went forth into Assyria," that is, he pushed his conquests into that country.
and builded Nineveh—opposite the town of Mosul, on the Tigris, and the other towns near it. This raid into Assyria was an invasion of the territories of Shem, and hence the name "Nimrod," signifying "rebel," is supposed to have been conferred on him from his daring revolt against the divine distribution.
21. Unto Shem—The historian introduces him with marked distinction as "the father of Eber," the ancestor of the Hebrews.
23. Aram—In the general division of the earth, the countries of Armenia, Mesopotamia, and Syria, fell to his descendants.
24. Arphaxad—The settlement of his posterity was in the extensive valley of Shinar, on the Tigris, towards the southern extremity of Mesopotamia, including the country of Eden and the region on the east side of the river.
25. Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided—After the flood (Ge 11:10-16) the descendants of Noah settled at pleasure and enjoyed the produce of the undivided soil. But according to divine instruction, made probably through Eber, who seems to have been distinguished for piety or a prophetic character, the earth was divided and his son's name, "Peleg," was given in memory of that event (see De 32:8; Ac 17:26).
32. These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations, &c.—This division was made in the most orderly manner; and the inspired historian evidently intimates that the sons of Noah were ranged according to their nations, and every nation ranked by its families, so that every nation had its assigned territory, and in every nation the tribes, and in every tribe the families, were located by themselves.